Siapa sastrawan yang tak kenal dengan tokoh dunia seperti Dante
Alighieri puisinya dengan judul "The Divine Comedy" sangat wajib
untuk dibaca! Walaupun ia tidak hanya menulis satu puisi itu saja namun
puisinya yang satu ini membuat namanya terkenal di dunia dan
menginspirasi, bahkan Dan Brown seorang penulis hebat ini juga memasukkan karya
Dante pada bukunya yang diberi judul "Inferno" dalam serial
petualangan seorang Professor simbologi dari Harvard yaitu Robert Langdon.
Kalian penikmat karya Dan Brown pasti tau dan sangat penasaran dengan buku
Inferno ini dan buku ini adalah bacaan wajib. Namun saya tidak akan
membahas buku Dan Brown hari ini, karena this is Dante time, and here we go the
lil information about Dante.
Dante was born in Florence in May 1265. His family was of an old
lineage, of noble birth but no longer wealthy. His education was undoubtedly
typical of all the youth of that time and station in life.
When he was only 12 years old, his marriage to the daughter of
the famous Donati family was arranged, along with the amount of her dowry.
These betrothals and marriages were family affairs, and Dante dutifully married
her, some years later, at the proper time and had two sons and one daughter.
Dante studied at the University
of Bologna, one of the most famous universities in the medieval world. There,
he came under the influence of one of the most famous scholars of the time, Ser
Brunetto Latini, who never taught Dante but advised and encouraged him. Latini
appears in Canto XV of the Inferno.
When Dante was still very young,
10 to 12 years old, he met a 9-year-old girl at a prominent function. She wore
a bright crimson dress, and to Dante, she radiated the celestial beauty of an
angel. The girl was Beatrice, and there is no doubt that she was the great love
of Dante's life, and the greatest single influence on his work. Dante loved her
at a distance, and she was, most probably, totally unaware of Dante's devotion
to her. He recorded this devotion in an early work Vita Nuova (A New Life). Her
name appears only once in the Inferno, but she plays an important role in Purgatorio and Paradiso.
Dante's public life began when he fought bravely in a battle at
Campaldino in 1289. By 1295, he was completely involved in political causes,
and was elected to the City Council that year. Florence, at that time, had two
political parties: the Guelphs, who supported the pope as the ruler of the
Catholic Church but believed that he should not be involved in secular affairs
(that is a belief in the American concept of the separation of church and
state); and the Ghibellines, who believed the pope should rule both secular and
religious factions. As a member of the Guelph political party, Dante was sent
often on missions to arrange peace between the two warring parties. His
opposition to the pope's interference to the unification of all the various
city-states often brought him to be at odds with the reigning pope.
While on a mission to Rome to arrange a truce between the two
parties, trumped-up charges were made against Dante: He was charged with graft,
intrigue against the peace of the city, and hostility against the pope. He was
fined heavily and ordered to report to the Council to defend himself.
Rightly so, he was fearful for his life, and he did not appear
to answer the charges. A heavier penalty was imposed. All of his property was
confiscated, he was sentenced to be burned at the stake if caught, and his two
sons were banished with him. In 1302, he was exiled from his native city, never
to return.
At first he joined other
political exiles, but he found them too stupid and selfish. It is not known
where he spent many of his years in exile, but he was often well received. He
began his great poem, The Divine Comedy, and it attracted a large
and sympathetic audience. Commentaries flowed soon, and he became very
well known. One of his hosts was the nephew to Francesca, who appears in Canto
V of the Inferno.
He died in Ravenna on September
13, 1321, and he was buried with honors due him. Several times during the
intervening years, the city of Florence has tried to get his remains returned
to his native city, but not even the intercession of several popes could bring
this about. His opinion of the citizens of his city was clearly stated in the
full title of his greatest work, The Comedy of Dante Alighieri, Florentine by Citizenship, Not
by Morals. Dante still lies in the monastery of the Franciscan friars in
Ravenna.
And this one is other reference about Dante http://www.biography.com/people/dante-9265912?page=1
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar